Life Outsourced: Globalization and Transnational Surrogacy in India

Sponsors

Heyman Center for the Humanities

Institute for Research on Women, Gender, and Sexuality

Columbia University Seminar in Narrative Health and Social Justice

Shamita Das Dasgupta and Sayantani Dasgupta will discuss the increasingly commercial practice of transnational surrogacy, with a particular focus on India. Filmmaker and producer Vaishali Sinha will show clips from her film "Made in India."

In the twenty-first century, parenthood is no longer achieved only through gestation, adoption, or traditional surrogacy, but also via assisted reproductive technologies (ARTs), where science and technology play lead roles. Furthermore, in a globalized world economy, where the movement and transfer of people and commodities are increasing to serve the interests of capitalism, gamete donation and surrogate birth can traverse innumerable geographic, socio-economic, racialized, and political borderlands. Thus, reproduction itself can be outsourced.

Following the lecture, we invite all attendees to a University Seminar Dinner at Faculty House at Columbia. The cost of the dinner is $25.00, payable by check at the dinner to Columbia University Seminars. RSVP for the dinner at Eventbrite link.

The event before the dinner is free and open to the public. Seating is first come, first served.